


The Young Perish, And The Old Linger

by ThatDamnKennedyKid



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Female Tony, Female Tony Stark, Tony Has Issues, Young Tony Stark
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-16
Updated: 2018-06-21
Packaged: 2019-05-17 13:51:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14833476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatDamnKennedyKid/pseuds/ThatDamnKennedyKid
Summary: On May 27th of 1993, Antonia Elizabeth Stark was born. It's been downhill from there.Or; Howard Sr was the man Steve knew, Howard Jr was killed in the 90's, and it was a teenage girl in Afghanistan.





	1. Not Old Enough, But Never Too Young

**On May 27th of 1993, Antonia Elizabeth Stark was born.**

Howard was left alone with the baby as the nurses rushed Maria to the OR, talking rapidly amongst themselves. The room was barren and quiet as he looked down at her, wrapped in a soft pink cloth. She was so small and pink, all squish and vulnerability. 

"A daughter." He said, holding her in the way the nurses had left him. "Useless."

Antonia was quiet in his arms, not asleep, but mostly still. It was like she could tell he was disappointed in her. 

He walked over to the prepared cradle, put her down in it, then left the room. 

Hours later, an older man would enter the room, looking for his son and daughter-in-law. With the lights out and the room empty, he was about to leave when little sniffles drew his attention. He walked over to the cradle, gasping softly in horror before picking her up. 

"Oooh, a little girl." He held her close, a gesture much more familiar and loving than the previous robotic hold. Her sniffles deepened into tears. "He left you here, didn't he? Oh, my poor girl. Don't worry. Grandpa's got you now."

He held her, talking to her softly and rocking until Maria was wheeled back in, the hemorrhaging abated, in the early hours of the morning. Maria was asleep, but father and son locked eyes. 

He tucked her away from her father's cool gaze, and his opinion of her was sealed. 

* * *

**On December 16th of 1997, Howard Jr and Maria Stark die in a car crash.**

She stood in the back of the foyer in a red and white winter dress as her parents bid goodbye to her grandparents. Her mother had already kissed her on the head earlier, so she knew she was dismissed, but she also knew that Grandpa didn't like it when she left before her parents did. So, from the back of the hall, she watched them walk out the door towards a tan sedan. 

"Antonia, don't disappoint me again." Were the last words her father had said to her, words spoken the day before, when they had first arrived.

Maria gave them one last parting wave, but Howard didn't bother to even look back. He started the car and drove away. 

"You didn't say goodbye." Mr. Jarvis said, picking her up to sit her on his hip. 

"Mom kissed me earlier." She replied. 

Mrs. Jarvis frowned and pursed her lips, but said nothing. Grandpa, leaning on his cane, sighed heavily. 

"Sad, but not surprising." He said to Mr. and Mrs. Jarvis. "How about we have burgers tonight, hmm, Tony?"

She nodded shyly from Mr. Jarvis' hip.

"Sit her on the couch, Edwin, if you please." Grandpa said, shuffling over to the large cabinet. Mr. Jarvis did as he was asked, pressing a little kiss to her cheek before going to help Mrs. Jarvis in the kitchen. Grandpa came back with some cards. "Would you like to play solitaire with me, Tony?"

She nodded more enthusiastically, crawling over to climb into his lap. He laid out the cards on the high table. She went still as she looked over the cards. 

"What do you think I should do first, little one?" He asked. 

* * *

**In the spring of 1999, Howard Stark Sr passed away.**

She got up from the wooden chair and stood at the edge of the pit. Mr. and Mrs. Jarvis watched her, sad expressions on their faces. She was too big to lift anymore, or else she might have been on one of their laps. 

The preacher finished his sermon and they began to lower the casket into the ground. When Grandpa got to ground level, she laid down too. She pressed her hand against the dark oak, keeping it there until it was too far down to reach. Mr. and Mrs. Jarvis got up to kneel beside her, their gentle touches bringing the tears to the surface. 

The attendees got up and left, shuffling away. Mr. and Mrs Jarvis let her stay there, little sounds of grief peeping from her. They remained until the gravedigger arrived. 

"We have to move, to let him do his job." Mr. Jarvis said softly. 

She got up and let them lead her to the car, driving back to the manor. Mr. and Mrs. Jarvis watched her go to the cabinet, pull out Grandpa's favourite cards and go sit on the couch, simply holding them. 

Mr. Jarvis got up to answer a knock at the door. 

"My condolences." Mr. Stane said, entering. 

"Thank you." Mrs. Jarvis replied. 

Mr. Stane walked over to her, crouching in front of her. "Hello, Antonia."

"Hello, Mr. Stane." She replied, a little vacant. 

"I'm going to be taking care of you now, okay?"

"Okay."

* * *

**In the summer of 2003, Antonia Elizabeth Stark graduated high school.**

"What do you mean, they're leaving?" She asked, a little hysterical.

"You don't need babysitters anymore, Antonia." Obadiah said, patting her head. 

"I have to say goodbye." She insisted. "You have to let me."

"Okay." 

She ran into the airport, sliding around a corner into one of the terminals and dashing towards them. She stopped just short of slamming into the back of Mr. Jarvis' legs. 

"Tony, aren't you supposed to be back in the car with Mr. Stane?" Mrs. Jarvis asked. 

"When you get back to England, please call me. Check on me, please. I can't keep you, but I'm not ready for you to go."

"Oh, Tony." The couple got to their knees, kissing each side of her face. "Of course. We'll call."

She nodded, because if she spoke she'd cry. 

"We're never far." Mr. Jarvis said.

"We'll always be with you. Just like Mr. Stark is." Mrs. Jarvis said.

She watched them go, smiling at them when they waved at her from the gate and once more passed it. She walked back to the car, entirely numb.

"Did you find them?" Obadiah asked. 

"Yeah. I said goodbye."

"Good." He pulled away from the curb, away from the airport. 

She wanted to cry, but there was no one who would hold her anymore. 

* * *

**In the spring of 2006, Antonia Elizabeth Stark graduates MIT summa cum laude.**

"You better fucking call me, Rhodey." She poked him with her diploma and the man snorted a laugh.

"Tones, if I've stuck with you this far, how the hell do you think you're gonna shake me?"

"I dunno. People float in and out of life." She dismissed with a wave of her hand. "Still headed off to the military, you nut?"

"Yeah. Applied for a pilot's position."

"You could always come with me back to Stark Industries. You know Obie's already got me lined up there. You're magna cum laude too, so that's a bonus."

"I appreciate the offer, but you know as well as I do that it's not the place for me."

"Yeah, I know. Can't blame me for not wanting to lose a friend."

He paused. "Remember how you were asking me if I knew anyone who you could use as a personal assistant?"

"Yeah? What about it?"

"I only got a confirmation email from her a few days ago - her college ends later than ours - but I think she'd be a good fit for the job."

"Forward it to me and I'll give her a call. What's her name?"

"Pepper Potts."

"Alright." She smiled crookedly. "Give me a hug, you little shit."

He snorted, reaching down to pick her up. She squealed and struggled, but laughed and pressed messy kisses to his face to get him to drop her. 

* * *

**In 2008, Antonia Stark did a weapons demonstration in Afghanistan.**

"This is a small town called Gulmira, ever heard of it?" Carrie from Berkeley asked, pointed and cruel as all good reporters do. 

Her breath was frozen in her lungs, staring at a place she'd never been but knew intimately. His face flashed before her eyes and she could feel his hands on her shoulders, trying to help her. "When were these taken?"

"Yesterday." Carrie spit. 

She pushed away from the bar jerkily, almost running in her haste to find Obie. 

"So are we double dealing now?" She hisses, standing on the step above to make direct eye contact. 

He answered her, smiling for the cameras, but she was left struck dumb on the red carpet. Carrie came down to stand beside her. 

"You didn't know, did you? After the press conference and everything, you didn't know." She said, softer.

She shook her head, more jerking than motion. She hadn't known. It's likely she would have never known, because Obie handled that stuff, helped her run the company better than any other VP she knew. She- she-

She knew her fate was decided in that moment, that somewhere along the line, this was all going to come to a head. She felt the invisible hand in hers, whispers and faith in every word and action. 

Carrie nodded and walked away in a moment of rare sympathy. Carrie knew her - tumbled with her in the sheets before Afghanistan - and for now, that translated into sorrow. 

Someone was going to die before this was over, and she would be damned if Yinsen lost again. She had already taken enough from him.

* * *

**In 2010, Antonia Stark runs the opening ceremonies of the Stark Expo.**

She's dying. 

She couldn't say anything, couldn't bring herself to worry Pepper and Rhodey so much when there was nothing to be done about it. She just didn't have it in her to disappoint one more time.

She was laying in the front seat of her hotrod, staring out over the darkened workshop. 

"I'm sorry." She said. "Doesn't look like I'm gonna make it to twenty, even. Don't hate me, Yinsen."

He didn't hate her for anything, but his disappointment in her efforts would hurt worse. 

"Tony, you okay?" Rhodey asked, laying a hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah." She stood and wobbled, leaning on him for support. "Get me over to the bar."

"You don't look in any state to be drinking." He said, but walked her over anyway. She would die underage, she's sure, but that doesn't mean she didn't know her way around booze. 

"'m not." She slurred, dropping onto the barstool and pulling out the box. She popped the Reactor from her chest and Rhodey winced. She ignored him and replaced the core.

"That was inside your body?" He said, softly, with worry. 

"Yeah." She popped it back in, smacking it into place. 

"You need to find something else. That doesn't look healthy."

She scowled, facing away from him to fix her chlorophyll. "I've already tried. There is nothing better."

And he left. All alone in the basement one more time. 

She would find salvation in this basement, all alone, elbow-deep in her grandfather's legacy. Spectres of her only loved ones hovered around her. 

"I'll live until I'm worthy of my second chance."


	2. Fight Me

**In 2012, Iron Man joins the Avengers.**

"I'll fly you to Portland. Gotta keep love alive."

The agent accompanying her nodded with a fond smile, leaving her side to disappear around the corner with another agent. 

"Ladies and gentlemen, Tony Stark." Fury announced. "She's our lovely Iron Man."

"No hard feelings, Point Break. You've got a mean swing." She tapped Thor's bicep with her knuckles and a cheerful smile. Thor just looked confused, like he didn't understand how sentient armour manifested into a teenager. 

"You're joking." Steve deadpanned. 

"Nope." Fury replied easily. 

"She's all of twelve-teen."

"Twelve and a half, actually." She interrupted, which made Natasha snort. 

"Regardless," Steve ground out, "you're too young for the field."

"Not too young to save your ass from the beating Loki was laying on it." She raised an eyebrow challengingly. 

"Are you serious?"

"Don't start a jackassery competition here, Rogers. I'm a teenager - you'll lose." She shot back. 

"All jokes aside, she knows what she's doing." Natasha spoke up. "Tony has been our immediate threat response for four years now and her success rate is incredibly high, her collateral damage the lowest."

Steve still looked disgruntled. 

She smiled brightly. "Don't worry about it, Capsicle. Without those years in the ice, you're only a few years older than I am, so I'll share Pepper's advice - don't frown so much or you'll get wrinkles early."

Natasha pursed her lips to suppress the chuckle, but Rogers didn't find it as funny. 

Fury sighed. "Agent Romanov, show them to the labs, please, so we can get down to business."

"Dr. Banner, Ms. Stark, follow me please." Natasha said, standing. She stuck her tongue out at Rogers just for good measure as they left, taking pleasure in getting Bruce to smile. 

* * *

**In 2010, Natalie Rushman was hired as Pepper Potts' assistant.**

It was her job to watch the youngest woman, to understand her and determine her value. 

Antonia Stark presented to the world as a brash, enigmatic youth with a charming smile and a charismatic smirk. She was a teenager's power fantasy: more money than sense, effortless intelligence, command of the world stage and a smooth complexion. She most definitely was all those things, from the moment she had to kill her way to freedom. She was beautiful, sexy, powerful, connected, wealthy and genius. 

Tony, however, was a young woman with no idea why the world wanted to watch her fall and intimately aware of the fact there was no one to catch her. She was young, scared and hyper-aware of the very real threats to her life. She was delicate and honest, a streak of innocence no amount of upper echelon debauchery could erase. She was shouldering the weight of the world, not even eligible to vote for the senators she verbally sparred with. 

"What would you do if this was your last birthday?" She had asked, standing at the window and looking out over the black ocean. 

Natasha knew why she would ask. She knew about the poisoning and the blindness Pepper and Rhodey were treating her with. Signs of suicide were littering her last few months, but neither of them approached her on it, not that she needed any more pointed emphasis on her loneliness. 

"I would do whatever I wanted to do, with whoever I wanted to." Natasha replied, a moment of honesty shining through. Fury had a plan, but if it didn't work, Tony would expire without a word. She would waste away in her workshop and disappear on a breeze, like the whisper of smoke. She would evaporate like morning dew, taking the rainbow with her as she went and no one would know why. 

Tony smiled wistfully, shedding her dress shirt and pulling out her favourite Captain America t-shirt and her most comfortable pair of shorts. "Feel like a walk, Miss Rushman?"

The beach walk and subsequent living room binge drinking session made it harder to face her in the morning, sitting hungover in a diner. To reveal herself as Natasha Romanov. 

But when it was all said and done, she found her old work phone ringing. She answered it on new habit, finding a sweet text. 

_No hard feelings, super spy. Give me a better review next time, though. I'll see you around, I hope._

She smiled at the phone, then turned it off and tucked it into her trunk. 

Tony was a lot of things, Natasha knew. But she was someone Natasha would trust the world to, without question. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More?

**Author's Note:**

> Should I continue?


End file.
